Elizabeth Naramore (co-founder of the PHPWomen group) has written up an excellent post sharing some research she did on why people don't contribute to Open Source projects (and what can be done to fix the situation).

As those in the open source community who either contribute to, use, or advocate open source projects, we understand the importance of keeping them vibrant and active. We understand how great it is to be a part of a growing project we believe in. We understand the benefits of being an active community member. We understand that it not only helps the good of those around us, but it helps us hone our own skills. So what can we all do to get more people to contribute?

The results from her completely non-scientific poll showed that the three largest factors people don't get involved were time commitments, unsure about where help is needed and a lack of confidence in their own skills. She offers some suggestions about what project leads and other developers can do to help bring more people in like:

Besides the more official list of projects happening for this year's Google Summer of Code, there's also been a lot of buzz in the community about the projects and calls for developers to help out on their project of choice. Here's just a few:

The request to take over as editor was not easy because it's a position that requires work and responsibility... and consistent time. [...] In these past years I've taken many breaks because breaks are good but today I'm required to do something, required to be responsible for being there. I happily accept this challenge and must confess... I love PHP.

He also adds in a note about the one thing the documentation team is in constant need of - "warm bodies to join the team". If you're interested, head on over and sign up to help - there's more than enough work to be done!

The request to take over as editor was not easy because it's a position that requires work and responsibility... and consistent time. [...] In these past years I've taken many breaks because breaks are good but today I'm required to do something, required to be responsible for being there. I happily accept this challenge and must confess... I love PHP.

He also adds in a note about the one thing the documentation team is in constant need of - "warm bodies to join the team". If you're interested, head on over and sign up to help - there's more than enough work to be done!